


Looking for a Mystery

by DesertVixen



Category: Cherry Ames - Helen Wells & Julie Tatham, Hardy Boys - Franklin W. Dixon
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-06
Updated: 2013-12-06
Packaged: 2018-01-03 16:22:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1072611
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DesertVixen/pseuds/DesertVixen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frank Hardy gets an unusual request.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Looking for a Mystery

**Author's Note:**

> Titles are not my strong suit - luckily stories are!
> 
> Written for the winter 2013 round of the intoabar ficathon.

For a moment, Frank Hardy thought he must have heard him wrong.

The hotel ballroom was fairly loud, full of doctors and nurses celebrating the opening of Spencer Hospital’s new wing, dedicated to medical researcher Joseph Fortune, and the bar was not much quieter. There almost had not been a party, as the building of the new wing had been plagued by a series of thefts and vandalism. Dr. Lewis Wylie, one of the senior doctors associated with the hospital, also happened to be a friend of Fenton Hardy, which was how Frank and Joe had found themselves called in. Joe had enjoyed the case, as it had given him ample opportunity to flirt with pretty nurses, and save the day.

Dr. Lex Upham was one of the doctors who had been pretty hostile during the case, so Frank was surprised to have the doctor offer to buy him a drink. 

Frank had been under the impression that Upham was at the dance with one of the nurses, a pretty and efficient woman with an irrepressible sense of humor. She had proved quite helpful in getting Frank out of an awkward spot during the investigation, and he admitted to being intrigued by a woman who saw mysteries as exciting, rather than annoying. Later, he had discovered that   
Nurse Cherry Ames took a personal interest in the wing being opened, as her family’s long friendship with Joe Fortune was one of the reasons she had gone into nursing. Cherry had been part of the final trap to catch their suspect red-handed, and she’d played her part to perfection. 

Lex Upham tipped the bartender, then handed Frank his drink. The doctor had a solid, imposing presence that lent him an unmistakable air of competence, if not friendliness. Frank though that the only time he’d seen any crack in the superior façade was when Upham had thought Nurse Ames might be in danger. 

When they had found what passed for a quiet corner, Upham repeated the question that had made Frank doubt his hearing. “Could you help me disappear, or something? I need a mystery.”

Frank stared at him for a moment. They’d had plenty of crazy ideas to solve mysteries, but he didn’t think the Hardys had ever been asked to create one. “Why would you need a mystery?”

Upham didn’t answer for a long moment. Finally, he sighed. “Cherry loves mysteries. I want to give her something that no one else can.”

“It’s still not really something that we do,” Frank said. “I’d like to help you out, but solving mysteries is a little different from creating them.”

“It doesn’t have to be a brand-new mystery,” Upham countered. “I can afford to pay good money for your time.”

Frank could only imagine trying to explain this conversation to his father and brother. “I am sorry, but the answer has to be no. We’re detectives, not mystery writers.”

Lex Upham looked like he wanted to say more. Before he could get the words out, a feminine voice rang out. “Lex! There you are.”

If he’d thought Nurse Ames was pretty in her starched white uniform and cap, Frank decided she was even better looking in a striking cherry-red dancing dress, her dark curls swept back from her face and dark eyes dancing. It wasn’t difficult to see why Lex Upham wanted to give her something special.

“Cherry, you remember Frank Hardy,” Upham said smoothly, as if trying to give the impression that the two men had been making small talk.

“I’m not likely to forget him,” she said with a smile. “Not after finding him hiding in one of my linen closets.”

“All in the line of duty,” Frank laughed. 

Cherry turned to Lex. “I’ve been looking for you. You owe me a dance, Dr. Upham.”

“How could I say no to you, Nurse Ames?” The tone was light, but Frank saw a flash of deeper emotion on the man’s face. He suspected that was why Upham wanted to give Nurse Cherry Ames a mystery – to give her something she couldn’t say no to.

As he moved off to find his brother, Frank found himself contemplating Upham’s request. Maybe there was some way he could help the doctor with his gift-giving problems. 

He’d give it some thought.


End file.
